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Prosecutors want to lock a 12-year-old boy up for the rest of his life - to stop him from killing again.
Cristian Fernandez could become America's youngest ever 'lifer' after being charged as an adult over the murder of his two-year-old brother.
Prosecutor Angela Corey said: 'We have to protect the public from this young man'. She recommended that he face trial as an adult.
Ms Corey said the public had a 'right to be protected' from him.
If Fernandez were charged as a juvenile and convicted he would be free by the time he is 21.
Fernandez is alleged to have beaten his younger brother David Galarriago to death at their home in Jacksonville, Florida, in March.
The two-year-old died from a fractured skull that caused bleeding on the brain. He died two days after being admitted to a hospital.
An autopsy showed the injuries were caused with blunt force trauma consistent with being punched in the head.
Fernandez had previously assaulted his brother and broken his leg.
Prosecutors decided to charge Fernandez as an adult rather than a juvenile defender after reviewing his history of violence and behavior.

Scene: The 11000 block of Alden avenue in Jacksonville, Florida, where police say Christian Fernandez punched his 2 year old brother to death

State Attorney Angela Corey said, 'It's one where you go, at what point do you step in, so you prevent another murder, and that's how we felt in this case.
'If we don't intervene now and do the tough thing. We have to protect the public from this young man.
'The fact that we indicted a 12-year-old in and of itself is a stunning event and a sad event in our prosecutor lives that we had to do this, but it is the only legal mechanism that we can use to protect the community from this particular defendant at this point'. Also charged: Biannela Susana, mother to Cristian Fernandez and David Galarriago, is charged with negligent homicide in the death of her toddler

Fernandez's defense has compiled a dossier exposing family turmoil, sexual battery and an abusive stepfather’s suicide.
His mother Biannela Susana, 25, had him when she was just 12-years-old.
Both mother and child were put into the foster care system when Fernandez was two and she was 14 after authorities found the toddler walking around dirty and naked outside a South Florida motel while his grandmother, who would have been about 34 at the time, nursed a drug habit.
Documentation also indicates that abuse was occurring regularly in the home from the beginning of Fernandez’s young life.
His stepfather shot himself in front of the family to avoid being arrested on child abuse charges.
The 12-year-old has been examined by two forensic psychologists who found him to be emotionally underdeveloped but essentially reformable despite a tough life.
Assistant Public Defender Rob Mason, one of two attorneys assigned to defend Fernandez, said: 'The whole system has failed him. This child clearly is a victim. We think he can be rehabilitated and, as his lawyers, we will fight for that.'
Mr Mason said Fernandez’s father has never been around, partly because he went to prison on sexual assault charges after impregnating Fernandez’s mother.

According to an arrest report, Fernandez was looking after his younger brother at their home on the 11000 block of Alden Road, while their mother was out.
When she returned to the family's apartment she found the toddler unconscious.
Instead of calling for an ambulance she wiped his face clean of blood, changed his clothes and put ice on his head, hoping it was just a concussion and the boy would wake up.
Police said she waited two hours before driving David to St Luke's Hospital.

Doctors told police that if she had sought immediate medical treatment the boy might have survived.
According to court documents it was the second time David was injured at the hands of Fernandez.

The younger boy suffered a broken leg in January that was initially blamed on a fall from a jungle gym.
Court records show that Susana later admitted to the Florida Department of Children and Families that she lied to investigators and that Fernandez broke his younger brother's leg while wrestling with the boy.
Police said Susana continued to allow Fernandez to baby-sit his younger brother.
Fernandez is the youngest person in Florida to ever be charged as an adult with first degree murder. The charges carries a mandatory life sentence.
His mother has been charged with negligent homicide and goes on trial later this year.

he shouldn't be thrown in jail for what he might do in the future. the prosecution has obviously seen Minority Report too many times.
he needs to be taken away from that living situation and held until he's 21 while being rehabilitated.

the death of the younger child is awful, but it's more of a family issue. it's not like this kid was shooting up shopping malls.
i can't believe that the prosecutors are so ignorant/jaded that they think the only answer is to throw this kid in a cage with murderers and rapists for the rest of his life.

he shouldn't be thrown in jail for what he might do in the future. the prosecution has obviously seen Minority Report too many times.
he needs to be taken away from that living situation and held until he's 21 while being rehabilitated.

the death of the younger child is awful, but it's more of a family issue. it's not like this kid was shooting up shopping malls.
i can't believe that the prosecutors are so ignorant/jaded that they think the only answer is to throw this kid in a cage with murderers and rapists for the rest of his life.

Well he did break his leg before and this time he killed him. He was raised by a 12 year old mother, though and not a very bright one it appears.

Originally Posted by beli

kim kardashian - made famous for having a sex tape, should die in a fire

Originally Posted by McMama

Have you ever walked into a mall, sat on God's lap, and had your picture taken?

Well he did break his leg before and this time he killed him. He was raised by a 12 year old mother, though and not a very bright one it appears.

i agree that this kid is fucked, but look at the situation he was born into. the prosecutors aren't taking that into account.

the callers on the radio show the other day were basically saying lock him up and throw away the key. i couldn't believe it.
i guess that's what we should do from now on. maybe the next time a kid steals a candy bar we should chop off his hands too.

i agree that this kid is fucked, but look at the situation he was born into. the prosecutors aren't taking that into account.

the callers on the radio show the other day were basically saying lock him up and throw away the key. i couldn't believe it.
i guess that's what we should do from now on. maybe the next time a kid steals a candy bar we should chop off his hands too.

I always hate to see anyone this young be put away for life, so I'm not going to argue with you. He definitely needs some work, though.

Originally Posted by beli

kim kardashian - made famous for having a sex tape, should die in a fire

Originally Posted by McMama

Have you ever walked into a mall, sat on God's lap, and had your picture taken?

i agree that this kid is fucked, but look at the situation he was born into. the prosecutors aren't taking that into account.

the callers on the radio show the other day were basically saying lock him up and throw away the key. i couldn't believe it.
i guess that's what we should do from now on. maybe the next time a kid steals a candy bar we should chop off his hands too.

Shoplifting and murder ain't the same ball park.
When animals go bad we put them down. Just sayin.

The kid might be trainable. It's a shame to put him down without giving him a chance. I mean, his mother was TWELVE when he was born for crying out loud.

I understand the circumstances were different, but most prisons don't actually rehabilitate anyone. Criminals come out angrier, meaner, and with more connections than when they went in. For the most part.

Now, I'm not saying that's a reason to put him down, I think it's more a reason to look at the prison system.

Jesus Christ, 12? Maybe keep him in prison until 21 so at least he's an "adult" when he fucking spawns. People like that dont' stop making babies.Ugh.

Well, we all know the best thing to do with an offender this young is throw them in prison so they can learn skills from those who have more experience than the young offender so he'll be able to perfect his trade later. Don't want to do anything like put him in some kind of treatment foster home so he might be rehabilitated. Nope, that'd make too much sense.

That being said, his mother deserves whatever she got for being stupid enough to allow this kid to continue babysitting after he broke the baby's leg.

Well, we all know the best thing to do with an offender this young is throw them in prison so they can learn skills from those who have more experience than the young offender so he'll be able to perfect his trade later. Don't want to do anything like put him in some kind of treatment foster home so he might be rehabilitated. Nope, that'd make too much sense.

That being said, his mother deserves whatever she got for being stupid enough to allow this kid to continue babysitting after he broke the baby's leg.

People who do treatment foster care take extra classes to learn to deal with children who have special circumstances. Sometimes that may mean that the kid is viewed as a threat because of past actions.
No, I wouldn't take him into my house because I have my hands pretty full right now with my own, thanks. Nor would I feel comfortable having him around the two younger kids. That doesn't mean that everyone out there is looking at the kid as a lost cause though.
When it comes down to it, I couldn't care less what they do with this kid. Rehabbed or jailed, he's going to be housed, clothed, and fed on taxpayer money. In the end, it would be nice if he can come out the other side of 'the system' as a reasonably healthy and productive member of society. But even with a good foster home and intensive therapy that might not happen. :shrug:

If I didn't have a kid and had the specialized training, I would take him. I don't condone what he did AT ALL, but I also think prison is no place for a 12 year old. I think if he was removed from that environment, he could be rehabilitated. I have done different community service/mission efforts with foster kids that have had horrible backgrounds and that have done some pretty scary things (haven't seen a murderer yet, but kids that set fire to their parents bed, tortured animals, etc) The majority of the kids thrive so much better when they are removed from the abusive home and placed in a healthy environment with a strict routine and of course counseling services. The mother said they were wrestling when the baby's leg got broken the first time, it could have just been rough play, acting out wrestling moves and other things that kids do. Or it could have been malicious. I just really don't think life in prison makes sense here.
And yeah, the mother deserves any charges she gets fo letting the 12 year old keep the 2 year old. Fail all around on this one.

He beat a child to death! If he is placed in a foster home, you best hope that it is not with other children and the foster parent sleeps with a knife under their pillow.

Suzanne Knight (21) brutally raped and devoured 3 toddlers while on a meth binge before hanging herself Marky69: If those toddlers didnt want to be eaten then they shouldnt of looked so god damned delicious. RIP Suzanne

Normally I would agree but I am hesitant with the level of violence the older boy used in killing the 2 year old. This wasn't just an accident, like "oops we were playing and it got too rough", this was the incredibly violent act of him literally beating a child to death. The time when the boy killed him was not the only time that he showed violence against the other child either- don't forget he broke his leg. This kind of continual, increasingly violent behavior is not something that I am sure he can be "rehabilitated" from, especially when he has the learned and ingrained impulse to do harm to others based on what he had experienced at the hands of his family. This is just too perfect of a set up for a future sociopath I am afraid...

At 12 I knew what beating another person to death meant. I don't know about life, but there is juvenile hall. I don't think letting his young age blur his actions would be any better for him in the long run. He should be taught that some things are unacceptable no matter what age you are and if you do the crime there will be some repercussion.

At 12 I knew what beating another person to death meant. I don't know about life, but there is juvenile hall. I don't think letting his young age blur his actions would be any better for him in the long run. He should be taught that some things are unacceptable no matter what age you are and if you do the crime there will be some repercussion.

Exactly. It wasn't like a 5 year old being too rough.

Suzanne Knight (21) brutally raped and devoured 3 toddlers while on a meth binge before hanging herself Marky69: If those toddlers didnt want to be eaten then they shouldnt of looked so god damned delicious. RIP Suzanne

Looks like the defense is planning on rejecting the plea deal the prosecutors offered because the public defender won't agree to any deal that will keep Cristian in custody after 18

This story is just all kinds of fucked up with the mom having the kid at 12, her mom (his grandma) being a druggie, his step-dad shooting/killing himself in front of them to avoid being arrested on child abuse charges (for abusing Cristian)... and now there is also the possibility of second charges being filed against him for sexually assaulting another half-brother...

Jacksonville prosecutors may seek another indictment against 12-year-old Cristian Fernandez for a second crime that could put him in prison for life.

State Attorney Angela Corey said Monday the other case involves the murder defendant assaulting another half-brother. The victim was 5 at the time.

Corey wouldn?t specify if sex abuse was involved, but a court motion the prosecution filed in June said the 5-year-old told authorities Cristian molested him. The filing also said Cristian admitted it to sex crimes detectives.